Sky gets Champions League

Sky scooped the majority of the TV rights to Champions League football until 2012, after tabling a blockbuster bid estimated at more than £240 million (E333m). UEFA made the announcement after the broadcaster comprehensively outbid three rivals in order to secure exclusive rights to all but one match per round of games from the start of the 2009-10 season.

The live rights to the most attractive match on a Wednesday night remain up for grabs, with ITV and the BBC expected to fight it out. The terrestrial broadcasters, together with Five, will face further competition from Sky when the second round of bids are opened later this week.

The pay TV operator was determined to retain the rights, partly to make up for the loss of the FA Cup and England internationals, previously shared with the BBC but now snatched by ITV and Setanta, from this August.